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What started you on the path to becoming a vegan cookbook author and instructor? Well, that is some story, so I will give you the short version. I had no intention of doing this with my life, but when I was diagnosed with cancer at 26 years old, I took a path that opened the whole world to me. Adopting a vegan macrobiotic diet healed my health and showed me the path I was meant to be on…to teach people to have a better, healthier relationship with food; that eating real food, unprocessed plant-based food can have an immediate and dramatic impact on their day to day health and wellness. Television caught me by surprise, to be sure. I was going along in life, quite contented with teaching cooking classes (which were packed!) and working locally, but my husband had other plans. He had the genius idea that I should have a cooking show and 3 years after he shared his idea with me, we were on the air on national public television, with a cooking show about vegan cooking in 200 markets in the U.S. Who would have thought? With television came the ‘requirement’ of a cookbook to go with the show, so I wrote my first one, which was a challenge because I am a very free and uninhibited cook; no measuring for me. So to write a book helped me develop that discipline. I still don’t measure in my day to day cooking, but I do for my books and it’s a good discipline to have for developing recipes. Everything has a front and a back. Were you always interested in the culinary arts as a profession or did it catch you by surprise? I have always loved cooking. Growing up in an Italian household, I was in the kitchen with my mother all the time, learning and cooking. I loved it from an early age, but I also am an artist, so I imagined my life as a sculptor and painter. I got my first cooking job when I was 16. (Cooking always seemed to be the way I supported my art ‘habit.’) Actually, I was supposed to be working as a waitress that night (it was a seder being catered by a friend of the family), but I was so bad at it that the guests demanded that I be removed from the floor, so I was sent to the kitchen and my love affair with all things cooking was in full blush. It has never dimmed for me. Every single meal, every ingredient, every experience still excites me. By now, you’re a veteran cooking show star! How did your show, Christina Cooks, come about and what has been the most exciting part of that journey for you? As I said earlier, television was never a part of my big plan in life. I had no intention of ever doing anything so public, so ‘out there.’ And television has been challenging for me because of that. It’s not natural for me to be in front of big crowds, big audiences, but I have learned to do it and to channel my nervousness into the energy I need to do the job. But this job, this level of doing what I do has afforded me opportunities that I could not imagine. Travel, appearances, books to write all have come as a direct result of the television show. Most important for me, though, is that television gets my foot in the door where I might not otherwise have the chance: because of the show, I get to work with some of the most amazing people, doing the most amazing work in the world, making a difference in lives…especially for our kids. Because I am a TV chef, I have the chance to work with kids in schools, parents, teachers, non-profits all dedicated to making our children (our whole society) healthier and more vital. To work with some of these people and to see systemic change happen as a result of a cooking class or seminar is the best part of my job. What challenges did you face getting the show going and how did you overcome them? The biggest challenge we faced was because we were very clear that we wanted control-of our content, our books, our work schedule. And we wanted to educate people, not just stand up and show them how to sauté, but give them information that would help them make positive changes for themselves. So we opted for national public television. With that network, we had total control. As long as we met the production standards, kept the information educational and followed the rules that guide public television to this day, we had a home on the network. But that meant that we had to raise all our production money, every single penny, which means finding sponsors who shared our philosophy (a vegan, plant-based diet) and had the vision to get involved. When the show was new and not on the air yet, that was a challenge, but then we met Michael Potter, the genius behind Eden Foods who shared my view of food and put his money where his mouth was and got us off the ground and on the air. Eden holds a special place in my heart for so many reasons: their quality, their commitment to the environment for helping my dream come to fruition. You’re also an accomplished cookbook author. What is the guiding philosophy behind your books and how did you approach putting them together? Well, my life as an author has been dreamy. It was another thing that was not on my list of things to do in this life…writing, but well, if you want to make God laugh, just tell him your plans for the future. I signed with Penguin USA back in 1997 and it would take 1000 crowbars to pry me away from them! I have worked with John Duff, my publisher from the beginning and he has always inspired and guided me in my work. I am committed to helping people have a better relationship with food and I have no interest in lecturing, posturing or being holier than thou. My job is to provide good, solid information and then let people make their choices. As the years and titles piled up, Penguin has given me a lot of freedom to choose my topics, but John is always there to guide me and work with me to make the material appealing to the mainstream who may not be so into eating a plant-based diet. I want to make it fun, accessible, easy and sexy for people and with my publisher’s guidance and support, I think have done okay with that. What is your absolute favorite recipe that you’ve done that you find yourself cooking at home? (Please share the recipe!)  Oh, that’s tough. It depends on the day. But I will say that there is one dish I make once a week, so it’s up there with our favorites…a simple, yummy lentil soup. I have made this recipe my whole life, it seems and it’s always a winner. What are the staple foods you keep stocked in your kitchen? Italian extra virgin olive oil, sea salt, whole peppercorns, traditional balsamic vinegar, red wine vinegar, brown rice syrup, maple syrup granules, whole wheat pastry flour, semolina flour, canned tomatoes (that we can in the summer), whole grains (brown rice, millet, quinoa, barley, amaranth), beans (lentils…all kinds, chickpeas, black beans, pinto beans, split peas, cannellini beans), dark chocolate (for baking and snacking), whole wheat flour for bread, nuts, seeds, onions (red and white), shallots, garlic, ginger. The fridge is always stocked with greens, salad ingredients, root veggies (carrots, turnips, rutabaga), cabbage, celery, tofu, tempeh, seitan…whatever is fresh and in season at the market is in my fridge. And we keep fruit around for snacking, whatever is in season and fresh…and local and organic on all the ingredients possible. Whew! What is the most amusing kitchen incident you’ve had? Well, it’s a great story. I had a relative who is a fabulous person, but not so great in the kitchen. You can’t have everything. So one day, she called and asked me how to make a lemon meringue pie for her mother-in-law. I tried to talk her out of it, but she wanted to make that particular pie. I convinced her to buy the lemon curd and talked her through the crust, but well, she had to handle the meringue on her own. A few hours passed and she called in a panic. I got to her place and tried to figure out what had gone awry. Her meringue was lumpy. Now I have seen meringue too stiff, too runny, but lumpy??? So I asked her to tell me what exactly she had done to make it. ‘Well,’ she said, ‘first I hardboiled the eggs. How else would I separate the whites from the yolks as you instructed.’ Somehow I kept a straight face and got her through the recipe. I have told this story for years, but only with the promise to never reveal her name! What advice can you offer for people new to eating a healthy vegan diet? What are your keys to success? The key to success in any healthy lifestyle is to make the commitment and do it. Being healthy is our birthright, not something reserved for the wealthy and elite. But we have to want it. We live in a society that does all it can with marketing to encourage us to eat more junk food and do less that is healthy for us. Pharmaceutical companies have a stranglehold on our culture and only a change in lifestyle can break that hold. To begin your journey to health, make small changes. In the beginning, just add more veggies to your diet. From there switch up to whole grains and then add beans. Try something new, like tofu. The worst thing that can happen is you won’t like something and you’ll try something else. And stop buying processed foods, even vegan ones. As much as you can, strive to use whole, unprocessed foods and cook meals for yourself and your family. Yes, it’s time-consuming and a bit of work. But cooking is so sexy, so nourishing, so wonderful. Give it a go. Dust off the pots and pans and have at it. You will love it. Being fit, cooking healthy plant based foods, living a ‘green’ life need to become non-negotiable, like brushing our teeth every day. We live in a world that steals our health with over-scheduled lives, junk food and pollution. It’s up to us to fight back. We get to vote three times a day, with our forks. We decide, for the most part, what our health will be with our lifestyle choices. Choose wellness and vitality. What exciting projects do you have coming up? What’s on the horizon? Well, I am beginning a new book with Penguin. We are in the development stages, so this one is about a year and a half away. I am excited though; I always am when I begin a new book. We have also developed and are producing for public television a kids’ show called ‘I Play with My Food.’ With a young host from Mississippi, (Chef David Leathers), the show will strive to help kids have a better relationship with their food, from an early age. With segments on fitness, kids’ health, the planet, how foods grow and of course, cooking, this show is very exciting and has a great deal of potential. We hope to launch it in the fall of 2010. And then there’s the ‘Christina Pirello Health Education Initiative,’ the non-profit I founded to work with schools, teachers and communities to educate people on making healthier diet and lifestyle choices, especially in the more underserved in our communities. And finally, I founded a cooking school this past year. It’s a 6-month program designed to take people from the basics of cooking to home chef. We meet one weekend a month and guest teachers and experts come in and share their expertise about health, wellness and food and we cook…a lot. From there, people can go on to study to become instructors for the programs in my non-profit…or not. Thanks Christina! Contact Info You can reach Christina at www.christinacooks.com. *PRIVACY POLICY - Contact information is never, ever given or sold to another individual or company By subscribing, you agree to our Terms of Service. |
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